%% Current image kept on page per Image Pickin' thread: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1302121769032068900%% Please do not change or remove without starting a new thread.%%[[quoteright:300:[[LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/OrdinaryStudent_8672.jpg]]]][[caption-width-right:300: [[TemptingFate "Just an ordinary day in my ordinary life."]]]]

->''"I am Shirahama Kenichi, an extremely ordinary first-year high school student who loves reading books and growing flowers. But, for some reason now, '''I'm locked in a desperate battle on top of a speeding bus!'''"''-->--''Manga/KenichiTheMightiestDisciple''%%%% One quote is sufficient. Please place additional entries on the quotes tab.

The most common protagonist of a show targeted at teenagers.

Whether or not they discover their PowersInTheFirstEpisode or merely receive a CallToAdventure that sends them on a [[IAmWho quest for their true nature]], it usually quickly becomes apparent they are anything but ordinary.

They're revealed to be reincarnated ancient heroes or alien princesses RaisedByHumans. They suddenly find a use for the [[ChekhovsSkill obscure skill or art]] they've been practicing since they could walk, or they discover their entire life has been a SecretTestOfCharacter to prepare them for [[WithGreatPower a great responsibility]]. They find out their SecretLegacy as heirs to a BadassFamily of demon hunters, wizards, or {{Yakuza}}. They find an ancient mystical MacGuffin in their attic, buy one for a few coins from a junk dealer, or are given one by a mysterious stranger on their DangerousSixteenthBirthday. They suddenly gain a TricksterMentor or a MagicalGirlfriend. They establish secret identities as a HenshinHero or a MagicalGirlWarrior, find a way to channel KiAttacks, summon a powerful GuardianEntity or [[FallingIntoTheCockpit fall into the cockpit]] of a HumongousMecha.

Sometimes, instead of TakingALevelInBadass, they merely become a WeirdnessMagnet - for example, they gain ''something'' that makes the [[DudeMagnet opposite sex flock to them]], and possibly the [[EvenTheGirlsWantHer odd member]] [[EvenTheGuysWantHim of their own]], whether they [[UnwantedHarem want the attention or not.]]

Sometimes they're actually [[AmnesiacGod gods]]. And sometimes they are true average joes who simply have something unusual happen to them, and then nothing in their lives is ever the same again.

Either way, now they have to WakeUpGoToSchoolSaveTheWorld.

Look for [[HollywoodDressCode the kid in the fully open button shirt over a T-shirt, jeans and Converse sneakers]].See FarmBoy for their rural counterpart. Many, MANY animes live off this trope.

----!!Examples:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]* Takashi Komura, the main character of the anime/manga ''Manga/{{Highschool of the Dead}}'', is a pretty ordinary average high school student, prone to skipping classes and accused by his childhood sweetheart of being lazy...that is, until [[spoiler: the school's professors, then students, start being turned into zombies, and the aforementioned childhood sweetheart's current boyfriend starts turning into one. Takashi bashes his head in with a baseball bat]].* Shibuya Yuuri, in the manga ''LightNovel/KyoKaraMaoh'' is an average high schooler, while he's suddenly [[spoiler:summoned through a toilet seat to another world]] where he [[spoiler:is the ruler of the whole thing.]] Again, average.* Kouji Kabuto from ''Anime/MazingerZ'' was an ordinary student sometimes skipped classes, drove bikes and [[ParentalSubstitute took care of his little brother]]. Then he found out his grandfather had built a HumongousMecha and wanted him piloting it to save the world of a MadScientist. His friend Boss also counts: before Kouji moved to his school, his life was completely normal. If we check the sequels, Tetsuya and Jun from ''Anime/GreatMazinger'' averted this trope, but Hikaru Makiba from ''Anime/UFORoboGrendizer'' did not. She was a pretty normal high-school student lived in a ranch and loved riding horse... until she found out the cute boy worked at the ranch run by his father was an alien prince in disguise and a HumongousMecha pilot. [[spoiler:Maria Fleed]] believed she was an ordinary high-school student, raised by her grandfather... until her ''grandafather'' revealed to her that [[spoiler:she was the last survivor -as far as he knew- of the royal family from planet Fleed.]]* Notable among these incarnations is Kazuki Yotsuga from ''Anime/ParallelTroubleAdventureDual'', who is also the HumongousMecha Zinv.* Tenchi Masaki in any of the incarnations of ''Anime/TenchiMuyo''. Turns out he's an alien prince, and his family never bothered to tell him. Then there's Sasami, who tries to ''become'' one of these in the manga volumes. Being that she is an alien princess (and unlike Tenchi, knew all along), it doesn't quite work out. She should be glad that the goddess she's symbiotically fused with didn't decide to show up.* Momiji Fujimiya in ''BlueSeed''.* Natsuki in the manga ''HoukagoXPonytail'' seems pretty normal, but she's a hardcore {{Shoujo}}-manga {{otaku}}, and got black belt in both karate and taekwondo.* Ayato Kamina in ''Anime/{{RahXephon}}''.* A hilarious aversion in ''Manga/DailyLivesOfHighSchoolBoys'', where all the characters are indeed entirely ordinary highschool students.* ''Franchise/SailorMoon''.:** Tsukino Usagi, junior high student and reincarnated moon princess. And indeed all the Sailor Senshi. ** In particular, Tomeo Hotaru a.k.a. ''Sailor Saturn'', who when introduced is a small sickly girl who made friends with Chibi-Usa, only for us to discover that not only is she the host for the Big Bad of the season, Mistress 9, but is also the as-of-yet unawakened Sailor Saturn, the senshi of destruction and rebirth that Rei had been having visions of destroying the world. In the [[Manga/SailorMoon manga]] she then is aged back to a baby and adopted by Sailors Pluto, Uranus and Neptune only to age at an incredible rate when their presence is later needed by Sailor Moon. * A good quarter of the cast in ''Anime/ElHazardTheMagnificentWorld'' (the ordinary Earthlings who develop extraordinary abilities). Well, Makoto Mizuhara and Nanami Jinnai were ordinary high school studnets, and Mr. Fujisawa an ordinary high school teahcer. Katsuhiko Jinnai, on the other hand, was hardly "normal" when he was a high school student, given his [[ObviouslyEvil tendency to start ranting upon any slight to him or breaking out into crazed, maniacal laughter.]]* Kei Kurono and Masaru Katou (and in fact all high school-aged characters) in ''Manga/{{Gantz}}'' are bona-fide Ordinary High School Students until they get hit by a train and resurrected to play the Gantz Game. They're ''still'' technically Ordinary High School Students after that, they just have superpowered combat suits and deadly weapons -- and Kei is ''extremely good'' at using them.* Miaka Yuuki, Yui Hongou, Suzuno Oosugi, Takiko Okuda and [[spoiler:Mayo Sakaki]] of ''Manga/FushigiYuugi'' all started out as examples of this trope.* Aya Mikage in ''Manga/AyashiNoCeres''.* Kaname Chidori in ''LightNovel/FullMetalPanic''. And Sōsuke, being a militaristic nut. At least that's what she thought until it turned out that he's actually a mercenary working for an anti-terrorist organisation. [[HilarityEnsues His age made him a perfect candidate for being a bodyguard, even though he had no idea how an ordinary student behaves at all.]]* Tohno Shiki in ''[[VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}} Shingetsutan Tsukihime]]'', who even went so far to claim he was an ordinary high school student, when, naturally, he was anything but. Arcueid [[Quotes/OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent even comments on it]]. The best thing about Arcueid: she's being completely earnest without a trace of irony.* Kurusugawa Himeko in ''Manga/KannazukiNoMiko''.* Azuma Hazuki in ''YamiToBoushiToHonNoTabibito''.* Keiichi in ''Manga/AhMyGoddess'' (although he's more an ordinary college freshman).* Tomokazu Mikuri in ''{{Yumeria}}''.* Shikimori Kazuki in ''{{Maburaho}}''.* Kagome Higurashi in ''Manga/InuYasha''. In fact, this trend was specifically mentioned in the Anime. "It's been a while now since this ''every day average school girl'' has been crossing back and forth between the warring states era and modern times!" Unlike many anime where this is eventually eliminated, Kagome retains most of her School Girl-ness, to the point of always wearing her school fuku in the warring states period of Japan. Like ''Franchise/SailorMoon'''s Usagi, her gifts are related to a jewel or crystal, she's the reincanation of the powerful miko Kikyou, keeper of the Shikon Jewel, and her greatest strengths personality-wise are her kindness, love for others, and ability to make friends. This can bite her in the butt with such characters as Kouga the wolf prince who just doesn't take the hint, and Hojo, who like-wise can't take a hint.* Yusuke Urameshi and Kazuma Kuwabara in ''Manga/YuYuHakusho''-->'''Yusuke:''' Guy saves the world, still has to do algebra. Makes sense.* Not exactly a high school student, but Urashima Keitaro from ''Manga/LoveHina'' falls under this trope.* Kyon from ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'' is ''certified'' as ordinary by Itsuki. If it weren't for Haruhi's liking him, he wouldn't be worth looking at twice. [[WildMassGuessing Some fans have different theories]], and there is some support for them in the novels.** Ordinary or not, he has leashes on two of the most powerful beings in the area and can [[spoiler:destroy the universe at will]] -- or rather, [[spoiler:holds the keys to the molly guard over the nuke button, as it were]]. [[spoiler: And the third girl also trusts him to keep her secret from herself.]]* Nanami Lucia in ''Manga/MermaidMelodyPichiPichiPitch'', although she already had a SecretIdentity -- she just didn't know half her own secret.* ''Manga/MahouSenseiNegima''** Negi thinks early on that he'll need to hide his being a ''[[WizardsAndWitches Magister Magi]]'' from his class of ordinary middle school students.....who so happen to include an AntiMagic capable [[EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses princess]] ([[spoiler:Asuna]]), two ''Magistra Magi'' (Evangeline, [[spoiler:Chao]]), a MagicKnight [[spoiler:[[HalfHumanHybrid Half-Bird Tribe]]]] (Setsuna), [[GiveHimANormalLife two children]] of ''Magi'' ([[spoiler:Konoka & Yuna]]), a ''Ministra Magi'' ([[spoiler:Misora]]), a [[ColdSniper mercenary]], former ''Ministra Magi'', [[spoiler:[[OurDemonsAreDifferent and half-demon]]]] (Mana), [[spoiler:[[OurDemonsAreDifferent a full demon]]]] (Zazie), a [[OurVampiresAreDifferent vampire]] (Evangeline again), a [[TimeTravel time traveler]] ([[spoiler:Chao again]]), a ghost (Sayo), a [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot magic puppet/robot]] (Chachamaru), and a {{Ninja}} (Kaede); meaning that roughly a third his 31 students are [[EverybodyKnewAlready already in on his secret or have one of their own]]. One can just imagine LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya kicking herself for not enrolling in Mahora Academy.** The animes didn't wait as long, being only one season each (compared to the LongRunner manga), and made all the {{Muggles}} abnormal in the season finale.** If you stop and think of it, there were only ''four'' Ordinary High School Students (Nodoka, Haruna, Misa, and Madoka) to start with, although exactly how involved they were varied greatly. Yue, for example, didn't know anything about magic but knew that Mana, Kaede and Ku Fei were some type of mercenaries who would be able to help fight monsters.** As of 34 volumes in, only [[spoiler: two]] characters in his class are not supernatural, either due to the above list, training from another, or a pactio.* Amu Hinamori from ''Manga/ShugoChara'', though in elementary school, is a good example. After she obtains her guardian characters, she ends up with a couple of friends and a somewhat reluctant membership of the Seiyo Elementary Guardians.* Michishita Masaki from ''Manga/KusoMisoTechnique''.* Koyomi Mizuhara (Yomi) from ''Manga/AzumangaDaioh'' is a subversion, in the ironic sense that not only is she really and truly ''normal'' (even -- or rather, ''especially'' -- compared to her friends), she actually gets to ''stay'' that way.* The main characters of both ''Anime/YuGiOh'' and ''Anime/YuGiOhGX'', although in the latter case the high school is actually a training school for professional Duel Monsters players, changing the standard of "ordinary". * Subverted in ''Manga/{{Bleach}}''. Main character Ichigo Kurosaki protests frequently in the beginning of the series that he's an Ordinary High School Student... who just happens to [[ISeeDeadPeople be able to see ghosts]]. This proves to be a crucial distinction.** Ichigo's more-ordinary friends do have an unusual tendency to turn out to be not so ordinary after all, including a girl whose hairpins can raise the dead, a huge foreigner with a demonic arm, the [[LastOfHisKind last remaining member]] of an ancient order of magical warriors, and the secret concealed by Ichigo's father's ObfuscatingStupidity [[spoiler: he's a {{Shinigami}}]].*** In later episodes, a random classmate developed the ability to sense the spirit world, after showing no such ability before. * Takumi from ''InitialD'' delivers tofu in an old beater; and in the process, has learned drifting techniques that racers take years to master. * Sakai Yuuji of ''LightNovel/ShakuganNoShana''. All extraordinary traits he has he owe to an [[{{MacGuffin}} artifact]] he received out of luck. Unusually, we never learn how long he's had it.* Saito Hiraga of ''LightNovel/ZeroNoTsukaima'' was one of these until he was summoned by [[{{Tsundere}} Louise]] to [[FantasyCounterpartCulture her world]].* Emiya Shirou from ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''. Or so he likes to think.** He knows about his powers, that his adopted father is a magus, and that there are other magus. He just didn't know that he has a Reality Marble or expect that he could get that strong, since what talent he had lay in what was regarded as one of the most useless forms of magecraft.* Mikan Sakura from ''Manga/GakuenAlice'' who suddenly discovers she has a special ability called an [[AppliedPhlebotinum alice]] and is admitted to the Alice Academy. Though she is younger than a high-school student at the time.* Shinji Ikari from ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' is a very intentional {{Deconstruction}}. An ordinary student put in an extraordinary situation, Shinji faces a lot of issues and difficulties when facing off against the Angels, and because he suffers from a crippling lack of self-esteem and doesn't have any extraordinary abilities or skills, he's frequently out of his depth.* Light Yagami from ''Manga/DeathNote'' is a perfect example of this trope, until it's [[PlayingWithATrope derailed]] by the fact that he's both incredibly smart and [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity megomaniacally insane.]] Though all indications are that said insanity would never have manifested had not been granted the ability to kill anyone just by writing down their name; during a MemoryGambit he's legitimately horrified by the notion that he could be the infamous serial killer Kira.* Yasuhara of ''Manga/GhostHunt'' puts an unusual twist on this trope. He was a relatively normal high-school student until the rest of the main characters showed up and kind-of absorbed him into their group. Out of the eight main characters, Yasuhara is one of only two characters who has no powers at all. [[spoiler: though the other 'normal' character is actually just hiding his identity and amazing powers, though we don't find that out until the last episode.]] The twist? The series does not focus on him. In fact, he doesn't even show up until halfway through the series. He's there more to do the off-screen research for the group, which means that the [[TroubledButCute assholish-yet-somehow-charming]] character who had been doing the research previously now gets more screentime.** Mai being a more typical example - she's the 'normal' girl interested in ghost stories who gets involved with the ghost-hunting group and early on wonders what it would be like to have psychic/spiritual/etc powers. Turns out she has quite a few.* ''LightNovel/ACertainMagicalIndex'': ** Touma's [[AntiMagic passive negation power]] certainly makes him look like an ordinary student compared to people like his lightning-wielding UnknownRival Mikoto under most circumstances. In their first onscreen confrontation, Touma protests to a sparking Mikoto that he's "just a Level 0" esper. Mikoto makes a compelling rebuttal in the form of a giant blast of (ineffectual) electricity. He's "Level 0" only because his power is impossible to quantify.** If you're looking for the ''truly'' normal students, there are Saten Ruiko, Hamazura Shiage and Wataru Kurozuma, who do not have the benefit of anti-magic or anything of the like, they really have no abilities. Just special abilities, since even normals can outdo espers and mages where it counts.* The title character of ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanoha'' was an ordinary elementary school student, which shocked her students [[TimeSkip in the third season]] when they visited her [[InsignificantLittleBluePlanet home planet]] [[AllThereInTheManual during the first Sound Stage]] and discovered that the legendary mage Nanoha had a completely unlegendary past and civilian life. Well, an unlegendary past before 9 years old.* Almost all of the [=HiME=] from ''Anime/MaiHiME'' start out at this stage (although a few of them are [[IJustWantToBeNormal dead set on staying that way]]). Those that aren't ([[spoiler:Midori and Sister Yukariko]]) were Ordinary High School Teachers.* Saya from ''Anime/BloodPlus'' is an ordinary high school girl on the surface, but thanks to almost a lifetime's worth of [[LaserGuidedAmnesia amnesia]], she has no idea of her vampiric abilities... until a Chiropteran shows up at her school and starts messing things up, and she's forced to kill it.* Rin Tsuchimi from ''VisualNovel/{{Shuffle}}'', who just [[ContrivedCoincidence happens]] to be [[UnwantedHarem liked by five beautiful girls all at the same time]].** Two of which are princesses of ''worlds''. Another two aren't exactly normal either.* Kanzaki Hitomi from ''Anime/{{Vision of Escaflowne}}''.* Kaede of ''NininGaShinobuden'' was one of these. Until a HighlyVisibleNinja attempted to sneak into her room to steal her panties.* Kira Yamato of ''Anime/GundamSeed'' averts this trope -- he's actually a genetically-enhanced superhuman who [[IJustWantToBeNormal wants to be a normal high school/college student.]] It's later revealed that he was designed to not just be genetically improved but [[EvolutionaryLevels genetically "perfect"]].* Tsukune from ''Manga/RosarioToVampire'' is a normal high school student, at a distinctly [[ExtranormalInstitute not normal]] high school, with [[CuteMonsterGirl not normal]] high school friends. He eventually becomes not normal himself.* Rito from ''Manga/ToLoveRu'' wishes he was still an unremarkable Ordinary High School Student instead of the center of a complicated LoveTriangle with at least half a dozen points on it, including three or possibly four [[MagicalGirlfriend Alien Princesses]] -- [[spoiler:Lala, Run, Lala's little sister Momo, and maybe Momo's twin Nana]].* Toki from ''Manga/{{Amatsuki}}'' wouldn't even have ''become'' the hero if his school hadn't sent him to the museum for [[BookDumb failing history class]]. And just when he finally gets a fresh new start in life after being [[TimeTravel dragged into the past]] against his will, he's given [[IAmWho phenomenal cosmic powers]] that [[BlessedWithSuck ruin his life]]! His friend and fellow victim Kon could also qualify, however there is evidence to suggest he's [[ObfuscatingStupidity not all he seems]].* Taken to extremes in ''Anime/CodeGeass''. Lelouch is an ordinary high school student...who is an outcast prince, genius military strategist [[TheChessmaster chessmaster]], and all around MagnificentBastard (with [[CompellingVoice freaky mind-control powers]]) biding his time to jump at a chance to destroy [[TheEmpire Britannia]]. Kallen and Suzaku are inversions, being ace mecha pilots (with inexplicably superhuman physical abilities, especially Suzaku) for their respective sides who in the first few episodes come back to high school.** This can also be said of fellow student Nina, who starts the series as an above-intelligent but otherwise normal student and ends up a PsychoLesbian GadgeteerGenius. Shirley and Milly are also fairly normal, but start to really get wrapped up in events later in the series... really, the only character in their group of friends who stays absolutely normal throughout the show's run is [[SatelliteCharacter Rivalz]].* ''Anime/TheTowerOfDruaga''. As Kai said about her hero king husband who slew a god and united two warring nations under one rule: "Even Gil was just a ordinary boy in love."* Nagasumi of ''Manga/SetoNoHanayome''. Then, through a series of incidents, he was rescued and engaged to a mermaid [[MafiaPrincess Yakuza princess]], whose family promptly takes over his school. HilarityEnsues.* Kouichi Hayase in ''KuroganeNoLinebarrel''.* Karin and Kenta in ''{{Karin}}''.* Tomoki Sakurai (and others) from ''Manga/HeavensLostProperty''.* Most of the cast of ''Manga/FruitsBasket''.* Keita Ibuki in ''{{Kurokami}}''.* Shuji in ''Manga/{{Saikano}}''. (One of the few examples on this page that doesn't have powers, and ultimately, is powerless to change ''anything.'')* Oori in ''ShikabaneHime''.* Lain in ''Anime/SerialExperimentsLain''. She gets progressively less ordinary (along with the show.)* Mikado, Masaomi, and Anri in ''LightNovel/{{Durarara}}''. [[spoiler:[[ImageBoard Well]], [[GangOfHats not]] [[HiveMind really]].]]* Kenichi Shirahama in ''Manga/HistorysStrongestDiscipleKenichi'' is even stated in the manga/anime to be completely ordinary and without talent for martial arts. His only talent is being a hard worker. Eventually they're able to beat skill into him.* Taken to its logical conclusion in ''Anime/StarDriver'', where evidently ''every'' student of the ElaborateUniversityHigh is an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent that's anything but ordinary. The new guy? He's TheChosenOne. That girl he befriended on the first day? The MacguffinGirl. The resident adviser for the dorms? She's one of the villains. Same goes for the [[ReallyGetsAround school bicycle]] , the head of the boxing club, and the ClassRepresentative. As for the Drama Club, it turns out they're all in LaResistance...* Tomoya Okazaki from ''VisualNovel/{{Clannad}}''* Tachibana Shingo from ''MusashiNumberNine''. Ultimate Blue agents often appear as such, but are anything but. * Subverted with Ayumu from ''Manga/KoreWaZombieDesuKa'' for he's already a zombie.* Hayate and Ayumu started off as this in ''Manga/HayateTheCombatButler'', the rest of the cast being between {{Child Prodigy}} and {{Teen Genius}}, and a few {{Ojou}} just to top off the cake.* Mato and Yomi in the ''Anime/BlackRockShooter'' OVA. [[spoiler:They're still ordinary, though their counterparts in the other world interact with them. It's also implied that other people have similar counterparts.]]* Tsutomu Senkawa is an Ordinary High School Student -- until [[FairCop Birdy]] [[SpacePolice Cephon]] [[SpellMyNameWithAnS Altirra/Altera]] accidentally fatally injures him, [[GenderBender starting]] [[TwoBeingsOneBody off]] [[SharingABody the]] [[FusionDance premise]] [[TheyFightCrime of]] ''Anime/BirdyTheMighty''.* Ayase Yuuto, the male protagonist of ''NogizakaHarukaNoHimitsu'', found out the [[TheOjou female protagonist's]] [[ClosetOtaku secret]] and the two of them became friends because of this since he didn't look down on her for this. Her fans can't understand what she sees on him.* The heroes of ''Manga/{{Dreamland}}'' are all this in real life and have special powers in their dreams. Especially Terrence. [[ThisLoserIsYou You can't be more ordinary than that]].* Mahiro Yasaka from ''LightNovel/HaiyoreNyarkoSan'' is one of these who just happens to be in a LoveDodecahedron, and lives with, a group of [[LovecraftLite literal]] [[EldritchAbomination Lovecraftian]] [[MoeAnthropomorphism horrors]], [[UnfazedEveryman without somehow going permanently insane]]. It's revealed early on that his mother is a part-time Evil God Slayer, and he inherited her skill with [[ForkFencing forks]]. [[spoiler:The novels take it a step further, revealing that Mahiro can perceive and resist distortions in space-time, an extremely rare ability.]]* The original pilot of ''Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar'' had Kenshiro as an ordinary high school student... Who could kill a bull with brute force and could cause [[YourHeadAsplode head explosions]] with a [[FingerPokeOfDoom single touch]].* Ataru Moroboshi of ''Manga/UruseiYatsura'' started the series as one. Then he arrived at home and discovered he had to [[ItMakesSenseInContext foil an alien invasion by chasing down and touching the horns of the cute daughter of the leader of the invasion force]], and normality went down to the drain.** A later manga episode [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded it]]. When the principal organized a contest of physical prowess among the classes one student immediately protested that one class had an unfair advantage due the presence of students with superhuman abilities. Ataru, Lum, Mendo and Ryunosuke agreed that those students had to be equalized... Only to realize too late they were speaking of ''themselves'': Ataru was incredibly fast, Lum could fly (to be fair she's an alien, and on her planet it's normal), Mendo's arms were so strong he could break a bronze bell from the inside and Ryunosuke had {{Charles Atlas Superpower}}s!** An anime episode brought the trope UpToEleven by adding ''[[Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar Kenshiro Kasumi]]'' to the class rooster!* ''Manga/OuranHighSchoolHostClub''s Haruhi, who is the subject of a reverse harem situation, for reasons she doesn't understand. The normal(-esque)commoner put in a school of rich kids with trope personalities. She just wants to study. Lampshaded by the fact that she is only revealed as a girl at the end of the first episode.* Youko from ''LightNovel/TheTwelveKingdoms'' objects that she's just an ordinary high school student word-for-word during TheReveal.* Sorata from ''LightNovel/ThePetGirlOfSakurasou'', a pretty average boy, was first sent to the local QuirkyHousehold for keeping a cat, then had the responsibility of looking after an IdiotSavant dumped on him...* Nanami from ''Manga/KamisamaKiss'' starts out as one before being unwittingly turned into a PhysicalGod before the end of episode one. Even after this she still tries to act like one and maintain the illusion that she is one.* Honoka Takamiya describes himself as such within ''thirty seconds'' (discounting the title sequence) of the start of ''Manga/WitchCraftWorks''. It turns out that in fact, there are a number of witches out to kill him for some reason, and the [[EvenTheGirlsWantHer hottest girl in the entire school]] is a MagicalGirlWarrior whose mission is to protect him.* Ayumu Mikoshiba from ''Manga/OtasukeMikoMikoChan'' was one before his mother passed down the title of Miko-chan onto him. He still is one, in many respects.* Aoi Mitsukuni thinks he's an ordinary high school student until he learns his mother is really ''SpacePirateMito''. Which makes him both a HalfHumanHybrid and the HiddenBackupPrince of the entire galaxy.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Audio Play]]* Emma Grayson of ''AudioPlay/TheElysiumProject'' is an ordinary teenage girl who happens to be the daughter of the creator of the eponymous Elysium formula, a SuperSerum which grants people [[RealityWarper reality-bending powers]], and as a result ends up getting exposed to the formula and targeted by the villains.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan''** Peter Parker, which was revolutionary at the time. A ''sidekick-aged'' protagonist?!** Inverted in ''ComicBook/SpiderManLovesMaryJane'', however, in which Mary Jane -- the protagonist -- actually ''is'' an ordinary high-school student.* Doug Ramsey was a kid from suburban New York who was good at languages, and didn't know any different until he was informed by an acquaintance from the [[{{Comicbook/X-Men}} odd boarding school nearby]] that he was in fact a mutant with powers of... [[WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway comprehending languages]]... and dragged out of bed in the middle of the night to come establish communications with a potentially hostile alien.* The ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}'' were all normal teenagers... who in the course of a night watched their parents kill a young woman, discovered superpowers/super gadgets/a telepathic dinosaur, fought off their parents, and ended up becoming runaways living in an underground mansion.* Jaime Reyes, the current BlueBeetle in TheDCU. One day he's just hanging out with his friends, the next he gets bonded to an alien symbiote, helps Franchise/{{Batman}} save infinite universes, and goes missing for a year, yet he ''still'' manages to come off as more of a normal kid than 90% of other teenage superheroes in comics.* Mineko from ''HeliosEclipse''.* For a while [[ComicBook/RobinSeries Tim Drake]] was this being just a regular, although brilliant, kid who through diligent detective work uncovered the secret identity of the first Robin and through him Batman and the second Robin. Even after taking up the mantle and becoming the third Robin he still fit the mold for a good portion of his career; his change didn't come until ''ComicBook/IdentityCrisis'' led to his father's death. * Putri from an Indonesian comic ''Satu Atap'' is an ordinary human [[http://oase.kompas.com/read/2009/08/05/21125038/Satu.Atap.dengan.Setan.Penggoda..Elf..Peri.Hutan..dan.Putra.Duyung who lived with a demon, elf, forest fairy, a were-tiger, and a merman]].* Dave Lizewski from ''ComicBook/KickAss'', supposedly. He makes it very clear in the beginning that there's nothing special about him that would lead him to become a superhero. He just does it because he's bored. But he makes the case that he's so ordinary by listing a bunch of things that normal high-schoolers do and then pointing out that he's ordinary because he ''doesn't'' do any of them.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Fiction]]* Justin is one in ''FanFic/KiraIsJustice'' besides for the fact he is a ShrinkingViolet and a little smarter than normal...until he receives the Death Note.* Mary Jane Watson of ''FanFic/UltimateSpiderWoman'' was an Ordinary College Student when she began to develop her bizarre superhuman abilities, and continues to be one even as she tries to juggle a superhero career along with it. * Jorge from ''FanFic/TheSecretLifeOfTheBackyardKids.'' Except he's not in high school, he's in middle school.* Fan fiction for ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'' has a genre of stories about ordinary girls who [[TrappedInAnotherWorld fall into Middle-earth]]. Some stories use a high school student. Some stories are SelfInsertFic by a high schooler. When a student arrives in Middle-earth, she no longer goes to school.** ''FanFic/TheAwkwardAdventuresOfMeghanWhimblesby'' are about a nineteen-year-old high school student from South Carolina. Meghan was in class when she [[{{Fainting}} fainted]] from [[AfraidOfBlood the sight of blood]] and somehow woke in Middle-earth.** In ''FanFic/HowToSurviveInMiddleEarthWhenYoureATeenagedGirl'', Priscilla is the teenaged girl of seventeen years from a cattle ranch near Magnolia, Texas. The story did not show Priscilla in school, but it was summer, when most schools have summer break.** In ''FanFic/TimeWillTell'', Jorryn is sixteen years old when she falls into the Shire. This happens, not during school, but during the summer holiday of 2001. Jorryn is only four feet and five inches, short, but taller than a hobbit. Other than that, Jorryn is a generic girl from some small town in the USA.* There are few of these floating around about these kinds of people being thrown into the world of ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}''. The Fan fiction '' FanFic/{{RWBYReckoning}}'' is considered by quite a few as suprisingly well written.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Films]]* The film and book of Stephen King's ''Film/{{Carrie}}'', and the film sequel, ''Film/TheRageCarrie2''.* Sam Witwicky was just an Ordinary High School Student until he bought his first car. [[TransformersFilmSeries Turns out it was an alien robot.]] [[WeKnewIt Who knew?]] His special quality is just being the great-grandkid of the man who found Megatron. * ''Film/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''. The movie, unlike [[Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer the show]], starts with Buffy not even knowing about vampires and Slayers.* ''Film/{{Clockstoppers}}'' features an Ordinary High School Student who stumbles upon a device that allows him to functionally stop time.* [[BrotherSisterTeam Carmen and Juni Cortez]] in ''Film/SpyKids''.* If you think about it, the eponymous ''Film/MysteryTeam'' isn't that much different from a group of outcasts with an unusual hobby at any high school.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]* Inverted in ''Literature/HarryPotter'', as everyone knows that he's special from the start--''except him''.* ''Literature/BattleRoyale''* Subverted in Garth Nix's ''Literature/KeysToTheKingdom'' series, in which the protagonist essentially becomes the heir to the House (the "epicentre of creation", the denizens of which give our universe about the same casual interest as a rather exciting zoo) simply because he almost died on the right day. That's right kids. [[spoiler:This kid essentially becomes ''God'' by nearly dying]].* Bella Swan in ''Literature/{{Twilight}}''. Until she falls in love with a vampire -- or more to the point, the vampire falls for ''her.''* In the lovely juvenile novel ''Wings'' by Bill Britain, the main character is an Ordinary High School Student who inexplicably develops a huge pair of fully functional bat-like wings.* Mia from ''Literature/ThePrincessDiaries'' is an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent who turns out to be a Princess of a minor European Principality. Unfortunately, it is not the case that EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses.* Jerry Renault, unexpected instigator of ''Literature/TheChocolateWar''.* The Literature/{{Animorphs}}. Ordinary middle/high school kids whose lives are changed forever when they decide to take a shortcut through a construction site. * In the ''Literature/AlexRider'' series, British teen spy Alex Rider gets a lot of flak from his teachers after spending too much time "off sick" -- though the obliviousness of everyone else does stretch credulity after Alex, having used a school trip to investigate a GM facility, [[spoiler:escapes by jumping onto the roof of the coach as it leaves the now-badly damaged building. When he uses a toilet break as a way of getting on board properly, the teachers barely say a word.]]* The [=DHIs=] in ''KingdomKeepers''* [[Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians The Percy Jackson series]] does this. Although, to be fair, he is an [[OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent Ordinary MIDDLE SCHOOL student]].** In fact, almost all the demi-gods fit into this trope. Why? Because most of them don't survive longer than that. ''[[BlessedWithSuck Ouch]]''. * Neal Shusterman's ''Literature/ScorpionShards'' trilogy features a group of ordinary teenagers who turn out to be [[spoiler:shards of a far-off star born as humans to eventually save the world]].* ''Literature/TheEyesOfKidMidas'' (also by Neal Shusterman) stars an Ordinary Middle School Student. Close enough.* ''Literature/{{Stuck}}'''s Tre Listman is also an Ordinary Middle School Student. [[UnfazedEveryman At first, anyway.]]* Ben was this before he was Literature/TrappedOnDraconica and in defiance of what almost always happens next, he '''stays''' ordinary. [[spoiler: By the time he finds out that he has a unique power to travel between worlds, at the end of the story, Dronor says he has to take it away from him to make sure a villain never gets their hand on it again.]]* Tsuruhara Iori and Aragaki Koji in ''Literature/WarAndSnowflakes''. [[spoiler: Aragaki, it is revealed, is not so ordinary: he had been conscripted to be a [[HumongousMecha titan]] pilot until a training accident made him unable to be a pilot, and left him with uncanny mechanical abilities.]]* ''Literature/TheExilesViolin'': When the story begins, Jacquie is on her way home from school. The school itself is never seen because her life is blown up and she goes straight to vocational training, so to speak, under her foster father. Occasionally she'll reflect back to this time with regret and lost opportunities. * David Rain from ''[[Literature/{{Dragons}} The Last Dragon Chronicles]]'' is an Ordinary College Student. [[spoiler:For awhile...]]* Played with in ''Literature/StrengthAndJustice'': the story starts with Jeremy Itsubishi's role as a law enforcement cadet with ImprobableAimingSkills as his superpower. It's only after that we find out he's a high school student as well. Then he's pulled into the main conflict, playing the trope straight. * initially subverted, then played straight in [[Literature/{{UnLunDun}} Un Lun Dun]]. Zanna is said to be obviously special to all who see her, and she is the "Shwazzy," the prophesied savior of Un Lun Dun. Until [[spoiler: she is attacked and her memory of Un London is removed]]. Then her friend Deeba, the completely normal, non-prophesied highschooler must save the city instead.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live Action TV]]* ''Series/{{Roswell}}'' had this as the main hook for the series (and helped pioneer the genre). Max in particular strives to as "average" as possible * Claire Bennet of ''Series/{{Heroes}}''. * ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''. True of the Scoobies, but not so much Buffy herself; she knows at the start of the series that she's the Slayer. * Nickelodeon's ''Series/TheTroop'' plays this straight and hard with Jake.* ''Series/JoanOfArcadia'' talks to and does missions for {{God}}. * The premise of every DisneyChannel show, ever. "S/he's a just a normal high schooler; except that s/he's really ([[Series/ThatsSoRaven a psychic]], [[Series/HannahMontana a teen popstar]], [[Series/WizardsOfWaverlyPlace a wizard]], an alien, [[Series/TheSuiteLifeOfZackAndCody twins living in a hotel]], a man/woman, etc)!"** ''Film/WendyWuHomecomingWarrior''* ''Series/ICarly'' on {{Nickelodeon}} has ordinary high school students hosting an internationally popular hit webshow.* ''Series/TheVampireDiaries'' - Elena, Matt, Bonnie, Caroline, Tyler, Jeremy. This all changes when all of the characters start to develop their own individual identities.* ''Series/VeronicaMars'' - a normal high school student...and a private eye.* Alex from ''Series/TheSecretWorldOfAlexMack''. She even says "I was just another average kid until an accident changed my life" in the opening credits. It's also worth noting that she wore a similar outfit to the one described above on the day she was soaked with the chemicals that gave her superpowers.* ''Series/{{Spellbinder}}'' - the main character, Paul, gets trapped in a parallel world during a school field trip, and his arrival is a catalyst that causes political upheaval in the otherwordly society. His friends Alex and Katrina have to juggle school as they work to bring him back.* Pete, Linda and Bronson in ''Series/RoundTheTwist'' turn out to be {{Weirdness Magnet}}s - a lot of the supernatural shenanigans they attract happen at their local school.* ''Series/H2OJustAddWater'' - three, ordinary teenage girls suddenly realise they have the ability to turn into mermaids whenever they're splashed with water, and this is accompanied by elemental powers.* Scott McCall from ''Series/TeenWolf'' was an ordinary high school student (and asthmatic, no less, which severely curtailed his attempts to make the lacrosse team) until he was bitten by a werewolf.* Sabrina from ''Series/SabrinaTheTeenageWitch'' was just a normal high school girl until her sixteenth birthday, when her witch half manifested itself.* Maria, Kelsey, Clyde and Rani from ''Series/TheSarahJaneAdventures''. Clyde and Rani do have distinct talents, however- Clyde's a splendid sketch artist and Rani has great journalism skills. Maria is more the average protagonist until actor Yasmin Paige's own [[RealLifeWritesThePlot academic life]] persuaded her to leave the show. Kelsey was just a pilot-only character who got a SecondEpisodeSubstitute in the form of Clyde because there were too many females in the cast... and she was a bit bratty, too. Luke and [[spoiler:Sky]] don't fit this trope as they were created to be extraordinary. In fact, Luke ends up going right into college because of his high intelligence.* The ''Franchise/PowerRangers'' are [[RecruitTeenagersWithAttitude teenagers with attitude]] by definition, although some seasons such as ''Series/PowerRangersTimeForce'' have them as full-time heroes who only have to maintain a civilian identity for the purpose of blending in.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Manhua]]* Hao Xuan, or so he claims, from ''Manhua/SchoolShock'' when the school is over run with terrorists and he finds himself in a hostage situation, only to be saved by Liu Lu who's new mission (after defecting the terrorists) is to protect him as he is a "Child of Eden", something that a lot of dangerous people seem to be after.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]* This is one of the [[ClassAndLevelSystem character classes]] in d20 ''TabletopGame/BigEyesSmallMouth''.* There is a French amateur tabletop RPG called ''Lycéenne RPG'' (''TabletopGame/HighSchoolGirlsRPG''), where you play [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin high school girls]]. MagicalGirlWarrior optional.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]* Kyo Kusanagi in ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters'', although as the series went on his high school student image was dropped entirely (it's also been implied that he never attends high school at all due to his constant fighting).** And according to the ''Maximum Impact'' series, he's spent so much time fighting and training that he still hasn't graduated from high school.* Soma Cruz from ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaChroniclesOfSorrow Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow]]''. The game specifically says he is a high school student on a foreign exchange trip to Japan. [[spoiler:The reincarnation of Dracula]].* Kazama Jin from ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}}'' started out somewhat ordinary, but things haven't been exactly going well since. Ling Xiaoyu is a milder example. The ''Tekken 5'' ending for Kazama Asuka suggests she might be more than just a brawler, too.* [[StreetFighter Kasugano Sakura]] seems like a typical schoolgirl enamored with a rough famous fighter. Aside from the fact that instead of trying to date him, she prefers mirroring his moves as best she can. Including martial-arts fireballs. ''Everybody'' in ''VideoGame/RivalSchools''.* Fei from ''VideoGame/{{Xenogears}}'' plays almost every part of this troupe. Yeah, he knew martial arts but he thought it was just "normal" martial arts. Besides [[spoiler: knowing martial arts that can destroy God and giant robots]], he's also the only one that can pilot a special [[HumongousMecha gears]], which turns out to be the super ultra special one in the title. [[spoiler: He is also secretly one of the most powerful beings in the game's universe, whom "God" gave his power to.]] While he is utterly oblivious to all or this at the beginning, [[spoiler: he also has several split personalities. One of which has shut himself off from the world, and another which is an utter sociopath who makes full use of his godly power.]]* Many (though not all) recent ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' games feature Ordinary High School Students as protagonists. Something usually happens to make them considerably less ordinary, [[VideoGame/DevilSurvivor such as finding a computer that can summon demons]], [[VideoGame/{{Persona}} learning to call forth entities from the inside of their mind]], [[VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiDevilSummoner being forced to share their body with a Devil Summoner]], [[VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIIINocturne or being turned into a demon after witnessing the end of the world]].* [[MegaManBattleNetwork Lan Hikari]] and [[MegaManStarForce Geo Stelar]], but the latter fits better the description. None of them are high-schoolers, but close enough.* Even ''Franchise/{{Disgaea}}'' can't stay away from this one. ''VideoGame/Disgaea4APromiseUnforgotten'' introduces Fuka Kazamatsuri, a human girl who thinks that her adventures in the Netherworld are [[AllJustADream just an elaborate dream]], including the part where she's actually dead and supposed to be a Prinny.* Darren Michaels is this in the second ''VideoGame/BlackMirror'' game.* Makoto Naegi from ''VisualNovel/DanganRonpa'' is this in a nutshell. In his intro, he keeps re-iterating how [[RidiculouslyAverageGuy normal and unremarkable he is]], almost saying the trope word-for-word. He's overtly [[TheEveryman plain]] compared to the rest of the cast of crazy characters.* Link and Zelda start out as students at a knight academy in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword''.* ''VideoGame/{{Valis}}'' heroine Yuko Ahso is an ordinary high school student in the human world who becomes a Valis warrior in a MagicalLand.* A few protagonists are this in the ''Franchise/SuperRobotWars'' series. Most notable is Touya Shun of ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsJudgement'' who was an Ordinary High School student (who went to school with the protagonists of ''Anime/{{Mazinkaiser}}'' and ''LightNovel/FullMetalPanic'') until a HumongousMecha crashed into his school.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Visual Novels]]* Hiroyuki in ''ToHeart''.** And so is Takaaki in ''ToHeart2'', also an UnluckyEverydude with an UnwantedHarem consisting of [[HotLibrarian Manaka]] [[ClassRepresentative Komaki]], [[HardDrinkingPartyGirl Yuma]] [[{{Tsundere}} Tonami]], [[CoolBigSis Tamaki Kousaka]], [[StudentCouncilPresident Sasara Kusugawa]], [[AgentMulder Karin Sasamori]], [[TimeTravel Yuuki Kusakabe]], [[HumanAliens Ruuko Kireinasora]], [[LikeBrotherAndSister Konomi Yuzuhara]], and [[TeenGenius Sango Himeyuri]].* Played with in the {{Nasuverse}}, where [[VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}} Shiki]] and [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight Shirou]] know they are not ordinary, yet fail to realize the full extent of how extraordinary they are.* Takeru in ''MuvLuv' is a typical harem protagonist [[spoiler:who is dragged into an alternate crapsack universe]]* Battler, from ''VisualNovel/UminekoNoNakuKoroNi''. All his powers to "fight" witches were granted by the witch herself, [[spoiler:at least at first]]. The 'student' part of him has not much focus, though, as the story take place in his off day [[spoiler:with him getting killed and all]].* Ethan Kairos in ''VisualNovel/TimeHollow'' is completely ordinary. He just happens to be the latest in the line of his family to receive the power to adjust history via a special pen.** The English manual quotes this trope exactly, describing him as an "ordinary high school student".* The Ultimate Luckster, Makoto Naegi of ''VisualNovel/DanganRonpa'', considered himself one, since he was picked to go to elite academy Hope's Peak by winning a lottery. His only outstanding trait is that he tends to be more optimistic than others. [[spoiler: Not so ordinary anymore when that same optimism helps defeat the Mastermind, Junko Enoshima, the Ultimate Despair.]]** Hajime Hinata and Nagito Komaeda of the [[VisualNovel/SuperDanganRonpa2 sequel game]] can also qualify, [[spoiler: at least at first. Despite Komaeda's title being the same as Naegi's and the fact that he got into Hope's Peak under the ''exact'' same circumstances (lottery), he's stated to have ''legitimate, extreme fluctuations between good luck and bad luck.'' Hinata, however, is revealed to have ''no'' outstanding talent, and is ''actually'' an Ordinary High School Student from one of the reserve groups. At least, before his [[TheAce transformation...]]]][[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Animation]]* ''MattNDusty'' has Matt. No magic powers, no super-intelligence, no respect from anyone.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]* ''Webcomic/{{Darkbolt}}'': The lead three characters (Naoko, Mariko, and Yun) start out as this before being force-bonded to demons trapped in small little orbs.* ''Webcomic/{{Megatokyo}}'': Sonoda Yuki is actually a MagicalGirl. * Mike Cosley from ''Webcomic/{{Bardsworth}}.''* Kanzaki Kei from ''[[http://www.revenant-braves.schala.net Circumstances of the Revenant Braves]],'' more so than any other character.* Sarah from ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'' is, to her regret, the only member of her group of friends who isn't a shapeshifter, witch, mad scientist, or martial artist of some kind.** For most of the first story arc, Elliot does indeed seem to be an ordinary student with a [[WeirdnessMagnet weird friend]], but it's progressively revealed that he's far more unusual than that.** Catalina appears to be pretty normal too, though she's not shown up much past her introduction.* Ash and Emily from ''Webcomic/{{Misfile}}'', until [[OurAngelsAreDifferent Rumisiel]] got stoned while in charge of the [[RewritingReality Celestial Files]]. [[HilarityEnsues Wackyness Ensued]].* ''Webcomic/DividedSky'', like so many other tropes, lampshades it.* Uma from ''Webcomic/EverydayHeroes''. To everyone else, she's perfectly [[http://www.webcomicsnation.com/eddurd/everydayheroes/series.php?view=single&ID=107230 normal]].* Iris Kolrick and Jacob Freeman from ''Webcomic/{{Shadownova}}''. Iris is later revealed to be an [[PsychicPowers Esper]] with [[KillItWithFire pyrokinesis]] but Jacob is truly ordinary.* [[Webcomic/GirlGenius Agatha Clay]] is an ordinary (if exceptionally clumsy) student at Transylvania U., raised by completely ordinary parents. Until it turns out her father is a famous hero, her mother is some kind of evil goddess, the most powerful man in Europa wants to imprison her (while his son would like to "form a mutual alliance" with her), and she might cause an apocalyptic disaster just by existing. She stops being "ordinary" pretty fast.* Hatsune Rondo of ''Webcomic/MayonakaDensha'', until her transportation back to VictorianLondon.* ''Webcomic/BittersweetCandyBowl'' has a cast of them.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Original]]* Yuri Mikagami in the round-robin story ''[[http://www.improfanfic.com/dhh/ Dark Heart High]]''. A bit of a subversion as its revealed in the very first scene that her father is a retired EvilOverlord. (A non human one at that!)* As far as ''{{Survival of the Fittest}}'' goes, it would be easier to list ''exceptions'', since everyone in the entire cast is an Ordinary High School Student. For example, Johnathan Michaels of V2 was a world champion boxer and Renee Valenti of V3 a burgeoning movie star.* Nick Reilly, Bill Wilson, Tony Chandler... A lot of the kids who become mutants and then go to SuperheroSchool Whateley Academy in the ''WhateleyUniverse''.* The main character in ''Literature/TheFiniteLifeOfADatingSimHeroine'' is one of these.* Yu Jin of ''TAL''. [[spoiler:Partly subverted however when Ei Mae Tal tells him he likely is older than he thinks.]]* Taylor from ''{{Literature/Worm}}'' used to be one. Then she got superpowers.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]* ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom''* ''WesternAnimation/{{Ben 10}}'': Ben was an Ordinary Elementary School Student, but was the star of the (apparently hugely popular for high school) soccer team at the end of the TimeSkip. ** Well, he was the goalie anyway.* ''WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko'': Every member of the group is an Ordinary Student, though Jeremie is the only one who can use the Supercomputer, Aelita is the only member who can deactivate towers, and the other three are her protectors.** Aelita's status is a lot more complicated; she didn't start out ordinary in any sense. ** Oddly enough, William is an actual Ordinary Student until Season 3. Debate has been going on for quite some time on several fan forums as to whether he's still a Warrior or an Ordinary Student in the series finale.* ''KimPossible''...sort of. Right from the start she's insanely overachieving, even besides the WakeUpGoToSchoolSaveTheWorld stuff, though her {{sidekick}} Ron fits the trope a bit better.* Terry [=McGinnis=] in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond''.* ''{{Freakazoid}}''s Dexter Douglas - 'Nerd computer ace, when surfing on the internet he got zapped into cyber space! He turned into the Freakazoid! He's strong and super-quick!' is an excellent example, as Dexter didn't ask for his powers, and indeed Freakazoid is an entirely separate personality from Dexters. * [[{{Doug}} Doug Funnie]] is an Ordinary Elementary School Student in the Nick show, and Ordinary Middle School Student in the Disney one.* Presley in ''MummiesAlive'' is an Ordinary Student as well.* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', Twilight Sparkle grew up a student studying in magic and friendship. In [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirls the movie]], however, she is sent on a mission to another world through a MagicMirror, and the accompanying metamorphosis left her as a powerless {{human|ityEnsues}} in {{high school|AU}}.* Virgil from ''StaticShock'' was this, until the Big Bang gave him (and a bunch of other people) superpowers.[[/folder]]